The conglomerate will shift between $4 billion and $5 billion in debt to Vanda, in a transaction which would also help the No?2 fixed-line operator gain a backdoor listing.

The deal would generate one-time gains for Hutchison, which has invested more than $10 billion in the fixed-line market through its own capital and a $4.4 billion bank loan.

Through the issue of new shares and convertible bonds, Hutchison will end up with about 50 per cent of Vanda after placing 30 per cent of new shares in the company.

'Hutchison hopes to breathe life into Vanda,' the source said.

Vanda is 37 per cent owned by Hutchison and 26 per cent by a venture fund run by DBS. The computer systems integration company lost $55.85 million for the six months to September 30 and has a market capitalisation of about $1.7 billion. A backdoor listing via a Hutchison associate was seen as a faster way to market and could also provide a richer valuation on the HGC assets, analysts said.